| President says… : Never again! : --as nation remembers Lusignan massacre |  |  |  |
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| Saturday, 13 October 2012 23:10 |
PRESIDENT Donald Ramotar was among the large gathering assembled at the Lusignan Mandir on the East Coast Friday evening to pay homage to the memory of the 11 persons from five families in the community who were brutally murdered during the renowned massacre of 2008.
 President Donald Ramotar at the Lusignan Mandir Friday where a memorial service was held for the victims of the Lusignan Massacre which occurred in 2008 “The best homage we can pay to their memories is to ensure that this never happens again. And the best way to do that is for us to speak out; make our voices heard and reject division. Let everyone know that we disapprove of this kind of behaviour.” On the morning of Saturday, January 26, 2008, gunmen stormed the small village and ruthlessly murdered the villagers, among them five children. According to the President, they were cut down in their prime, some not even reaching there, as they were children. “That is why in remembering Lusignan five years ago, we must constantly learn to look for the fingerprint and modus operandi and reflect,” he said. Noting that there is always a tendency to cast blame on someone else when such atrocities occur, he said a case in point was the Agricola incident of Thursday gone, where members of the political opposition slapped the government with an ultimatum, and even before the deadline was up, seized the opportunity to mount a protest. And who did they blame for the dastardly events that followed? Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Roger Luncheon, of course! “They are now trying to single him out, forgetting that Moses Nagamootoo and Nigel Hughes sat down at a press conference, throwing threats against people and creating ultimatums in our society,” the president said, adding: “We must beware of those who instead of bringing people together to move forward as one nation, try to create division because unity does not serve their purpose. Togetherness does not serve their purpose.” He also warned that opposition politicians try to use such events to create division and fulfil another kind of agenda. “Nothing that the police or anyone has done,” he said, “can justify what we saw Thursday: Five hours when children, small babies, and old people had to stand on the highway. Many people were robbed on their way home. I want to reassure you we will work tirelessly to ensure law and order is upheld and respected in this country.” Returning to the matter at hand, President Ramotar said that while the event that occurred at Lusignan five years ago is one too significant to ever forget, one must not overlook the fact that many of the architects are still around. “…more important are the intellectual authors of what occurred here; and many of them are still around. They have their own diabolical thinking of how to achieve their ends. We have seen that playing out time and time again; it is something we have to fight until it is completely defeated,” he said. As for what he termed an ongoing and deliberate campaign to demonise the Police Force, and attack them at every turn so as to make them out to be ineffective, President Ramotar said while he would be the first to admit that the police do make mistakes, they are also in dire need of training. Noting some of the steps the government has taken to address those mistakes, he said: “…in some of the incidents, we have [set up] a Commission of Inquiry. You saw some of the incidents (referring to Agricola)… and I cannot help but admire the resilience and professionalism of our policemen when they were so provoked.” The January 26, 2008 event, which lasted about 20 minutes, broke the quiet of the morning with heavy gunfire as the marauding gang mercilessly killed the 11 persons. Those killed were: Clarence Thomas, 48; Vanessa Thomas, 12; Ron Thomas, 11; Mohandan Goordat, 32; Seegopaul Harilall, 10; Seegobin Harilall, 4; Dhanwajie Ramsingh, 52; Seecharran Rooplall, 56; Raywattie Ramsingh, 11; Shazam Mohammed, 22; and Shaleem Baksh, 52. Several of the children who were murdered were still in bed when the gunmen struck. Among the survivors were Arjune Bhim, and Roberto and Howard Thomas. The Thomases, who sustained life-threatening gunshot wounds, have since recovered from their ordeal. Former soldier, Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins, who claimed responsibility for the murders, was initially wanted for the April 2006 assassination of Agriculture Minister Satyadeow Sawh. Rawlins’ girlfriend had vanished in January, 2008 and Rawlins believed she was kidnapped by law enforcement officials in an effort to force him to turn himself in. Rawlins telephoned the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and warned them to turn over his girlfriend to him or face the consequences. Rawlins was killed by the police on August 28, 2008, when they caught up with him at one of his hideouts. On Thursday October 11, 2012, the political opposition which had constantly beleaguered the Guyana Police for its perceived lack of professionalism called for the removal of the Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee. After a no-confidence motion laid in Parliament by the opposition failed to have him removed, they began a series of orchestrated protests with each becoming more vociferous. The latest protest along these lines was taken over by persons, using cutlasses, bricks and knives to attack beat and rob scores of innocent commuters who were left stranded on the East Bank highway when protestors blocked the afternoon peak hour traffic. President Ramotar has since warned that the government will uphold law and order in the country and that all decent-minded people must condemn this sort of violence being used as a political tool by the AFC/APNU connection. He implied that it could lead to another Lusignan and urged Guyanese not to let that happen again.
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